The cars Wiki:Rules
This page consists of all of the rules and policies regarding the wiki that The Cars Wiki staff would like our users to follow. Policies Guidelines Instead of full rules, the following entries are classified as guidelines, as you will not receive any penalties for violating them. Instead, we request that you adhere to them solely to help make the wiki a better place and keep it organized. *When editing or creating a new article, please follow the Manual of Style. *All minor edits should be marked as "Minor edit". Minor edits include events such as fixing typos, linking to an article, or changing a line of coding or text. *Don't flood the wiki with an onslaught of minor or unnecessary edits, unless it is seen as understandable (such as fixing a typo or mistake that is present on several articles). *Proofread your work prior to publishing an edit; this includes checking text and pictures, as well as additional coding. *Edit summaries are not required, but when they are used, they should be constructive, explaining what was changed and why. Additionally, this makes reviewing recent edits much easier for other users. *Leave a signature when posting a new topic or reply on a talk page. Additionally, talk page formats must remain consistent; the name of the topic must be posted in "Heading 2" format, with the text posted below. To post a reply, add an indent to the text. *When uploading files, please make use of the FileSimmary Template in order to describe the licensing of the photo or video. *Use of the word "you" is generally not allowed. When discussing something such as a video game, one should use "the player" or a similar phrase. *Major edits should be discussed on the article's corresponding talk page prior to being published. *Although we allow alternate accounts, we ask that you stick to one account for edits. Alternate accounts should only be used for constructive purposes, such as backup should you somehow lose access to your main account through accidental means, such as forgetting your password. Minor rules Rules that, when broken, will result in a very short ban if violated, are considered minor rules. *All users should use proper grammar and spelling. *This wiki uses American standards, therefore British standards should not be used. Some examples include color over colour, favorite over favourite, etc. *As expressed at the top of all talk pages, they should only be used for discussing edits to the article, rather than opinions on the matter. *Do not make an excessive amount of edits to one article within a short amount of time, as this takes up space on the recent changes list, making it harder for others to review edits. General rules General rules are policies that will result in a longer ban if violated, and are considered to be of much more significance than the previous classifications. *Fan-made material such as fanart or fanfiction should be kept out of the mainspace - it is, however, permitted in space such as blog pages, message walls, etc. *Spam of any sort is not allowed, which is the advertisement of your own websites, work, or anything else. Users may do this in moderation on their userpages, however. *Userpages should only be edited by either the corresponding user or an administrator, the latter of which should only take place if any present content goes against any of the rules listed on this page. *This wiki is written factually; as such, please do not put opinions of a subject on an article, or speculative information that cannot be properly backed by an official source. *Instead of edit warring with another user, we ask that you attempt to work out the problem in a civilized manner on the article's talk page, or by having a discussion on a message wall. If the issue fails to be solved, an administrator should be contacted and they will join the search for a solution. *Do not egg on or battle with a vandal, and instead allow an administrator to deal with the problem. *While you are allowed to leave messages reminding other users of policies, please do not abuse this power; only leave a warning or reminder to the user if they truly deserve it. It should also be noted that these messages do not count as administrator warning messages, and they do not hold any sort of value in relation to penalties. *Removal of warnings from your message wall is forbidden. *Re-creating pages that have already been deleted by an administrator will result in a consequence, unless it is for good reason (such as something being confirmed after the page was deleted). *If an administrator makes an edit or correction, it should be left as is. Do not attempt to battle with an administrator over information. *Do not claim to be an administrator or possess any additional rights if you, in reality, do not. *Do not impersonate another user, by claiming to be an "alt" of them, or through other methods. Major rules Major rules are the most important and key rules to the wiki, and failure to follow them will often result in a much quicker ban, and potentially an immediate ban depending on the severity of the violation. *As per Wikia's terms of use, all users must be at least thirteen years of age in order to possess and make use of a Wikia account. *While most language is allowed here, it is preferred that you do not use words like "fagot" or "niger" or other words that are considered to be extremely offensive or socially unacceptable. The only exception to this rule is if a word is used in a professional context, such as in any Cars media, or song lyrics. Words like "hell", "damn", and "ass" are acceptable. *Do not vandalize the site in any way, such as blanking an article or adding non-sensible text. *Usernames must be kept appropriate. In addition to a block here, your account will be reported to Wikia, potentially resulting in a global ban (provided it breaks the terms of use) *Repetitive bullying or harassment of another user is strongly prohibited. This includes verbally assaulting someone over their interests, sexuality, username, edits, etc. Blocking When any of the above rules are broken, an administrator is given the authority to leave a series of warnings each time the user violates one of them. For broken minor or general rules, the following warning messages will be utilized: *For the first offense, a user will receive a message titled "Reminder", simply informing them of their mistake, and attaching a link to this page, requesting that they review it. *For the second offense, a user will receive a message titled "Warning", informing them that, if they break another rule, their account will be banned. *For the third offense, the user will be blocked, with the time depending on the severity of the violation. When a major rule is broken, however, users may be blocked immediately, again depending on the situation. Otherwise, there will be no "Reminder" message, and they will instead receive a "Warning" message first. Blocked users will always be left with the ability to post on their own message wall, giving them a chance to discuss the block with the staff and other users. This will only be taken away if it is misused, and breaks any more rules listed here.